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Заключительное коммюнике Форума

Modernization Announcement

The Concluding Announcement of the 1st IMF

 

(Beijing, August 2013)

 

 

The 1st International Modernization Forum: 'Modernization and Global Change', has been held in Beijing on 8 and 9 August 2013. Members of the scientific advisory committee of the forum come from 12 countries including the Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Italy, Korea Republic, the Netherlands, P. R. China, Poland, Romania, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States. The participants of the forum have held extensive discussions and reached some consensus.

 

  1. Modernization has been a profound change of human civilizations since the 18th century. It includes not only the great change and transformation from traditional to modern politics, economy, society and culture, but also all human development and the rational protection of the natural environment at present. Modernization has been a worldwide phenomenon making a global trend, which takes place both in the pioneering-countries and subsequently on a global scale with the exceptions of some communities.
  2. The process of world modernization in the period from the 18th century to the 21st century can be divided into two stages generally. The first stage of modernization includes the transformation from agricultural to industrial economy and society, and the second stage of modernization includes the transformation from industrial to knowledge-based economy and society etc. So far the first stage has been regarded as the classical modernization usually, and the second stage is the new one with some alternative interpretations such as post, continual or reflexive modernization and so on.
  3. According to the principles advocated by the preamble and Chapter I of the Charter of the United Nations, all nations participated in the process of world modernization, whether large or small, whether rich or poor, are equal and self-governing. And every nation has the right to pursue peace, security, development and happiness, and to make independent decision about the model and route for their development; and at the same time, the realization of this right could not be based on the sacrifice of the right of others and the destruction of ecological systems.
  4. Depending on their level of per capita income, human development and national modernization, all countries engaged in the process of world modernization can be generally categorized as either advanced or developing; and in the meantime, some countries have the features of both developed and developing in different aspects, cultural diversity exists across space and time. There are some possibilities for the two kinds of countries to change their status in this regard in some decades.
  1. Modernization study is an interdisciplinary science, and seeks to promote people's understanding of modernization phenomenon, and responds to some common issues: What is modernization? What is modernity? Which is the modernized country? How do developed countries keep their advanced status? And how do developing countries go upward into the club of developed countries?
  2. There are more than 60 years' history and many schools of modernization research, such as classical modernization theory, post-modernization theory, ecological modernization theory, reflexive modernization theory, multiple modernities theory, second modernization theory and so on. They explain the characteristics and principles of world modernization from different perspectives.
  3. Modernization is not only a process, but also a situation. It includes both the advanced level of modernization of different nations in the world, and the process to catch-up or keep this advanced level with the cultural pluralism from a policy perspective. Almost all nations in the world are undergoing some kind of modernization consciously or unconsciously at the moment, and the modernization drive can also be set as a national goal if they will.
  4. The driving force of modernization in our epoch is no longer merely material production, but the pursuit of the higher quality of life, human creativeness, technological and system innovation inspired by education and science etc. Meanwhile cultural diversity has been considered as one of the wellsprings of creativity, innovation and development; and citizens, civil society, business community and government are the partners in this drive.
  5. To promote the study of modernization and the modernization process, the need has arisen for founding the International Modernization Association (IMA), to organise regularly the International Modernization Forum (IMF), and to create the open-access Journal of Modernization Science (JMS).

 

 

Alberto Martinelli       

Chuanqi He Co-Chairmen of Scientific Advisory Committee of the 1st International Modernization Forum